> The Return of the King
>  by Bronyxy
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> 1 An Unexpected Visitor
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

A pink trail zig-zagged in short, jagged straight lines across the sky, betraying its owner’s erratic course that looked like it had been bounced between the buffers of a massive pinball machine. Then, as if it had suddenly developed a purpose that had eluded it up to that point, the trail set off in a straight line southwards at a speed rarely seen in the skies above Equestria.

One pony watched the melting trail dissipate into the pale azure sky and growled in frustration.

This was not over.


***


Five fillies, resplendent in their gold lined maroon capes trotted happily out of their clubhouse, laughing and playing with each other as they headed for the Castle of Friendship and the prospect of a tasty snack. Amongst the five friends, one could be seen standing out clearly, even from a distance, for among the pastel coloured coats; orange, yellow, peach and white, the fifth was as black as night.

Closer inspection showed her to be unique in another way too; she was an alicorn, just like the Royal Princesses, but this one was just happy to be a regular filly with her friends. It wasn’t that long ago that she had experienced the responsibility of command from the perspective of a resurrected Nightmare Moon and been manipulated at the hooves of the former Head of Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns, Spell Nexus. Although she had been forgiven by her friends, there were still some ponies who carried a grudge for what had happened, even though she had saved the town of Ponyville from a massed attack by the monsters that dwelt within the deepest recesses of the Everfree.

As they neared the castle that was home to Nyx, her adoptive mother Princess Twilight Sparkle and her friends Spike and Owlowiscious, they suddenly stopped talking and stared at a pink trail that flashed across the sky and descended towards the castle ahead of them. Clearly, somepony needed the Princess of Friendship even more than they did, so set off at a gallop to see who and why; perhaps it could be a friendship problem that they as the Cutie Mark Crusaders could help with?

Capes flowing over their backs flapping maroon, blue and gold flashes in a turbulent jumble of vivid colours, the fillies thundered along the wide road to the steps leading up to the castle’s main door, only then slowing out of reverence for what the imposing building stood for and the fact that it was their friend’s home.

Nyx stepped forward to open the familiar door and led her friends up to the Library, where Twilight was most likely to be. She recognised that her Mom was one of the four ruling Princesses of Equestria and frequently had important visitors, so knew to always be courteous and respectful, especially within the castle. Not that Twilight treated any guest as being less than important; be they a visiting Head of State or somepony with a friendship problem, she was the Princess of Friendship and that meant treating everypony with the same kindness and respect.

“Oh, hey Nyx!” greeted Spike from the top of a ladder as he saw the familiar black alicorn filly enter followed by her four best friends “Hi guys! Can I help you find a book?”
“No, thank you Spike, she answered “We saw a pink trail dive out of the sky and end up in the castle, so we thought we would come along and see if Twilight needed any help.”
“Haven’t seen her in a while” said Spike “How ‘bout you Owlowiscious?”

The owl turned his head round in that eerie way that owls do without appearing to move any other part of his body and replied “Hooo.”
“Yeah, thought so” said Spike “He hasn’t seen her either.”
“Tell you what” he continued “Owlowiscious has pretty much got the library covered, so I’ll come along too. Pink trail you say? Could be you may need a dragon to help you out!”

He was clearly in need of some rescue following what looked like another one of Twilight’s attempts to reorganise the library. Nyx giggled gently and looked up at the owl who said “Hooo” in a tone that seemed to suggest he could indeed take command of the situation while Spike took a break; or at least that’s how the baby dragon was prepared to interpret it.

Next thing, he found himself levitated and drawn through the air to be placed gently onto Nyx’s back where he sat happily at the same eye level as all the fillies.
“Where do you suggest we go next?” asked Nyx, knowing full well what the answer would be, but giving her friend the privilege of being seen to make the decision.
“The Throne Room” he replied, “It’s where she conducts all the important Princess business.”

They all trotted along the corridor, beginning to voice their speculations as to what the pink flash could have been, possibilities ranging from a pink chariot to Rainbow Dash being off colour.
Nyx knocked respectfully at the door and upon not hearing a response, nudged it open with her muzzle and stuck her head round the door to see that the room was indeed empty. The Cutie Map wasn’t active and just gave off a blank stare like any other table, offering no explanation as to where its mistress could be.

The fillies had felt certain that Twilight would have been in one of the two rooms and composed their thoughts before agreeing to split up into two groups; the three original Cutie Mark Crusaders in one group whilst Nyx with Spike and Twist formed the other. Both groups of friends set off in different directions, each winding their way through the labyrinthine stone corridors that criss-crossed and zig-zagged through the castle.

While the CMCs moved forward line abreast, none wanting to miss out on whatever they found, Twist was a lot more reticent and tucked in behind Nyx who led their way through what were to her well-established tracks through her home, taking in the biggest rooms first as far as the route allowed. She knew Twilight would be home; that much had been agreed earlier in the day, so she considered it unlikely that she had been called away on Princess business without leaving a note in some prominent place, so reasoned she must still be in the castle.

Eventually her sensitive ears picked up on something that sounded almost like a foal crying, and followed it to its source behind the door of the nursery. What in Equestria was going on? She would have thought that Twilight would have at least said something if they were expecting visitors, especially visitors with a foal.
She approached the solid wooden door and tapped gently, hearing a whispered “come in” from the other side.

Nyx lifted the latch in her magic and pushed the door open just enough to let herself squeeze through. She peered around the door and saw Twilight cradling a pale lilac foal tenderly in her forelegs and recognised the small form immediately, not just any foal but Princess Flurry Heart. All three friends gasped as they bundled in and saw who the visitor was.

“Husssssh now” lilted Twilight rocking the infant gently to and fro in her forelegs and humming a soothing melody.
The friends stood open-mouthed to see the smallest alicorn in Twilight’s tender embrace. Sure, she had been at the Castle of Friendship before and Twilight was her favourite foalsitter, but could it be that the pink trail in the sky had been her arriving?If so where were her parents or guards or anypony to look after her?

Without pausing in pacifying her little guest, Twilight motioned to Nyx as the only other winged pony in the room to move closer and then in the faintest whisper said “Go find Rainbow Dash would you please? And when you bring her back, please make sure she’s quiet.”

Nyx nodded and tiptoed out of the room leaving Spike and Twist to mind the baby with Twilight, and made her way to the nearest balcony. She trotted out, feeling the warm afternoon sunshine on her body and fluttered her wings in anticipation. Her unusual vertically slit pupils contracted in the unaccustomed brightness following the relative gloom of the castle as she focused on a cloud in the near distance. She squatted down on her haunches, coiling herself like a spring that held its tension for the merest fraction before releasing and catapulting the black alicorn skywards.

Even now she was returned to the body of a filly, her sleek black silhouette still commanded regal respect, striking awe and admiration into most, whilst in a few others it created resentment; but few could say honestly that they didn’t feel at least some hint of fear. Her development had been unique compared with that of any other pony and left her with significantly better developed flight skills than any pegasus of her age even after Princess Luna had stripped her of the dark magic that was not hers to keep. This was an attribute that she desperately tried not to flaunt in front of her schoolmates, and especially not in front of Scootaloo, whose frustration and impatience to fly were growing daily.

She darted nimbly between clouds, trying to find the one that Rainbow Dash would be napping on this afternoon, for she knew this was exactly what the cyan pegasus would be doing, but the question was where?

There weren’t that many clouds around on that afternoon, so it didn’t take too long to find her, in fact she was rather pleased not to have found her straightaway as it had given her the chance to fly and stretch her wings in a display of aerial competence that far exceeded her tender years.

After having searched fruitlessly on a few clouds, she saw a multicoloured tail flicking lazily over the edge of a small soft fluffy white cloud and knew she had found what she was looking for. As she knew Rainbow Dash was always one for a prank, Nyx flew beneath the tantalisingly waving tail and gave it a gentle tug, her victim spluttering in response and quickly pulling her tail up before a pair of rose coloured eyes peered down over the cloud.

“What did you do that for, Nyx?” she chided angrily, looking just like she did when her best friends had told her that Tank needed to hibernate.

The black filly looked into the usually happy rose eyes and sensing her prank had backfired started to cry and flew away as fast as she could. Rainbow suddenly appreciated that she had completely over-reacted to a harmless joke, and as the arch-prankster herself knew she could not allow herself to be seen as a grouch, so had to catch up and show she was a good sport.

Quickly, she tipped off the cloud and chased after the retreating black filly, whom she could hear crying even from this distance. As she closed the gap between them, she suddenly remembered what Twilight had told her about how highly-strung Nyx was, and began to feel very guilty indeed.

She caught up quickly enough and started spouting a string of apologies. Initially Nyx had sped up to get away, but then started to slow as she heard the remorse in Rainbow’s voice and put down in a corner of a park below them where there were pretty bushes with brightly coloured flowers and no other ponies around.

Rainbow landed beside her and looked into her frightened turquoise eyes, summoning her most friendly voice “Hey, you got me pretty good there kid. Look I’m sorry I scared you; I was just a bit grouchy being woken up was all.I like your style though.”
“You’re not mad at me, are you?”
“Nah – course not kid. Tell you what; you’ve clearly got a flair for practical joking, what say you and me pull off a prank together some time, huh?
“Really?” asked the reticent filly.
“Yeah why not? I’ve got some truly epic ideas!”

Having made peace, Rainbow put a friendly wing over Nyx, who drew near for comfort and reassurance, a smile starting to form on her face. Rainbow meanwhile just felt a wave of relief surge through her, and a smile broke out across her face too.

Rainbow felt the insecure warm body snuggle up close to her and tried to cast her mind back to a time not long ago when that same filly had been the reincarnation of Nightmare Moon, and the fight they had undertaken together against the invasion of Ponyville by the monsters from the Everfree. Poor Nyx had gone through more than anypony knew, and was still having to live with the legacy of awful memories. Feeling genuine remorse for her actions, Rainbow hugged the filly closer, desperately wishing she hadn’t reacted as badly as she had.

When Nyx had finally regained her confidence, she told Rainbow that Twilight was waiting for her in the Castle of Friendship. As an afterthought she added that her Mom couldn’t come herself because she was currently looking after Flurry Heart.

“What, you mean Princess Cadence and Shining Armor have been here today?”
“I don’t think so” replied Nyx “I don’t remember Twilight telling me anything about any Royal visit.”
“OK kid” said Rainbow, trying to make sense of what could have happened “You lead the way.”

Nyx sprang into the air and Rainbow gave her as second or two to get clear before drawing alongside.
“Your flying is really good for a pegasus of your age” she said conversationally “Do you still remember how you used to fly as a fully grown alicorn?”

“Yes, I remember everything I did when I was Nightmare Moon” she said sadly “And that includes the flying. It was a bit of a surprise when Princess Luna turned me back into a filly, because as soon as I went to fly again, I tried as a grown up, but my wings weren’t ready – you know?”

“I guess it must be really strange suddenly being grown up and then going straight back to where you started again.”
“Yes, but it must be the same for injured pegasi when they have to learn to fly again after an accident. I guess I’ve been lucky that way; at least I know I will grow into flying again.”

“Hey, wait a minute. I remember how brave you were taking on all those monsters and how badly injured you were afterwards; some ponies didn’t think you would pull through.”
Then she added “But I’m glad you did though. You were awesome!”
Nyx turned to face Rainbow and gave her the widest and most genuine smile she had seen in a long time.

They arrived at the castle and landed on the same balcony that Nyx had taken off from earlier and trotted along to the nursery where she nudged the door open to see that Twilight was still cradling Flurry Heart. Twist was still there as were the other CMCs who had eventually found them and now waited, eager to find out more about what was going on and offer their services in whatever way was needed.

Twilight’s focus remained on the infant Princess whilst her peripheral vision concurrently noted the arrival of two ponies; the first black and the second cyan, and knew that Nyx had been successful in her mission. She looked up and made eye contact, showing grateful thanks to both of the new arrivals. Just then, Flurry Heart started to cry and broke herself free from Twilight’s protective grasp, clearly highly agitated.

Hovering just in front of Twilight’s face, she babbled incoherently and spilled out her pent-up tension as the others looked on in astonishment.
“OK, Flurry Heart” said Twilight, not letting the concern she felt either cross her face or permeate into her soft voice “You’re fine. You’re safe. Husssssh now.”

Just then, Flurry Heart landed in front of Twilight and made sudden piercing eye contact with her, stretched her wings wide and contorting her face into a menacing growl that made everypony present recoil in shock.
“Flurry Heart” prompted Twilight gently “Can you tell me what happened?”

The foal did her best to roar and made clawing actions with her forefeet before collapsing onto the floor sobbing. Twilight leaned down and picked up the delicate foal, staring at Rainbow.
“I think somepony’s going to have to pay a visit to the Crystal Empire” she whispered gravely.
“Do you mean she flew all that way on her own?” asked Rainbow incredulous “She’s only a foal …”
“Yes” added Twilight “But an alicorn foal, and a very determined one at that. I don’t know what’s happened, but if she’s felt it necessary to make that long journey by herself it must be pretty serious.”

“Spike” she asked, “Take a message please.”
The baby dragon quickly picked up a quill and parchment and prepared for dictation, staring up at Twilight expectantly once he was ready:

“Dear Princess Celestia,

Flurry Heart has arrived at the Castle of Friendship on her own. I don’t know what’s happened to Cadence and my brother or for that matter what’s going on in the Crystal Empire, but when I ask her she pulls faces and growls – she’s very upset. I think somepony’s going to have to investigate. If I don’t hear back from you, I will go take a look myself.

Spike, put on the usual ending and then send please.”

In full organising mode, Twilight turned to the cyan mare:
“Rainbow, you are the best and bravest flier I know …”
“Oh Yeah!” she butted in.
“… If we don’t hear back, would you be prepared to accompany me to the Crystal Empire?”
“Awesome! Awesome!” chanted Rainbow Dash.
“Right then, I’ll take that as a ‘yes’. But first, I want you to go find Fluttershy and see if she can come over to look after Flurry Heart if we’ve got to go away.”

Rainbow saluted smartly and exited quickly to undertake her mission.

Next, she turned to her daughter:
“Nyx, I want you to go to the train station and see whether the train service from the Crystal Empire is running normally. Don’t let on that something may be wrong, but tell me anything that is out of the ordinary.”

Subconsciously copying Rainbow Dash, Nyx too saluted smartly before realising what she was doing and disappeared out of the door more quickly than she had intended so as to avoid her friends seeing how embarrassed she looked.
> 2 Twilight Enlists Help
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“So you see, ‘Shy” said Rainbow in conclusion “We need somepony we can really trust to look after Flurry Heart. Are you up for the job, or what?”
“Oh, my” replied the timid pegasus smiling nervously “Don’t you remember how powerful she was when we went to her Crystalling? I really don’t think I’m the right pony for the job …”
“That’s the spirit” interrupted Rainbow, oblivious to her friend’s protestations “When the fate of Equestria hangs in the balance, we know we can always count on you.”

Fluttershy fully recognised that there was no way her friend was going to accept anything other than her complete compliance, and given that she could either acquiesce now or try and protest, which would still end in the same result, decided not to prolong the inevitable conclusion and whimpered a faint “Eeeep!”

“Thanks ‘Shy. I’ve got to go get ready for an epic adventure in the Crystal Empire …” said Rainbow, who glimpsing her friend’s reticence looked at her innocently and said “… Unless of course you would rather take on the monsters that are probably waiting there right now ready to rip us limb from limb, and I could look after the cute little foal instead?”

Fluttershy lay on the floor quivering and covered her eyes with her forehooves at the prospect.
“Come on ‘Shy” she continued in her hectoring tones “Twilight’s waiting. You do want to help, don’t you?”

Harry looked at the brash pegasus disapprovingly and let out a low growl that anypony else would have taken as warning to reconsider their most recent actions very carefully, but Rainbow remained oblivious and dragged her hapless friend towards the door.

“Oh dear” she whimpered “If I must.”

Nyx landed under the shade of the tree that stood next to the station and gave her wings a little flutter as she furled them to her sides, then looked up towards the deserted looking building. She took a stroll onto the empty platform and then looked all around, but there was nopony to be seen. A quick look at the timetable suggested that the next train from the Crystal Empire wasn’t due for at least another hour, so she had no leads.

Next, she trotted the few steps over to the big two-storey building adjacent. It had a winching beam extending out over the track, so she guessed it must have something to do with the railway’s infrastructure and reasoned that her enquiries would not be complete if she didn’t at least ask there too. She knocked on the door, hearing the echoes reverberate and fade within; sounds that did not fill her with any confidence that she would receive any more of a positive response.

She waited and knocked again, but upon getting no reply, she sprang into the air and climbed in wide circles looking each way down the tracks to see if she had missed anything, but nothing was out of the ordinary. Disappointed, she set course for the castle and returned to give her unspectacular report, wishing she had something more interesting to tell.

Upon returning to the nursery, she noted that she was the first back and drew up close to her Mom, relaying to her the undramatic account and looking at the troubled foal nestling in Twilight’s forelegs.

Shortly, more hooves could be heard approaching from down the corridor, the unmistakable loud tones of Rainbow Dash leaving absolutely no mystery as who would be coming to join them next. The hooves stopped outside the door and then everypony heard a very quiet voice saying “We must be quiet now. We don’t want to scare the little one.”

A cyan pony strode in confidently followed by the tentative appearance of a primrose muzzle around the door. Two big cerulean blue eyes sought out the smallest Princess and once she found her cuddled up tightly in Twilight’s embrace, Fluttershy let out a heart melting “Aaaaw” sound and tiptoed over.

“Would you like me to take her from you?” she asked.
“Oh please, if you would Fluttershy” replied Twilight gratefully “I think Rainbow and I have a journey ahead of us.”
“Could I take her back to my cottage?” asked Fluttershy “It would be easier for me to look after my little animal friends too.”

“I would rather not, if that’s OK” said Twilight “You know how Flurry Heart can get a bit, you know, out of control sometimes? Well, she knows the nursery very well and it’s like a second home to her, so she’s much more likely to settle down here than at your cottage. Also, I don’t want her accidentally demolishing your home and possibly hurting any of your animals.”
“Oh, I see” said Fluttershy, nodding her head “That’s very thoughtful; thank you Twilight.”

The lilac pony handed over the precious bundle to the most caring pony in Equestria and motioned with her head to Rainbow to join her outside in the corridor.
“Girls and Spike” she whispered “Thank you for everything you've done today. I think Fluttershy may be grateful of some more help if she’s going to stay here; like going to feed her critters …”
Fluttershy nodded gratefully.
“… and also keeping her fed and getting anything she needs. Can you manage that for us please?”
The six youngsters all nodded enthusiastically, eager to help out.

“And before it gets too late” she continued “Make sure your parents and guardians know where you are and that you’re on Official Princess Business; you’re all deputised, OK?”

Twilight left the nursery filled with the happy smiling faces of proud, newly appointed deputies followed closely by Rainbow who was clearly eager for adventure.
“So, shall we fly up north and smack some heads?” she asked enthusiastically.
“No Rainbow, first things first. We haven’t heard back from Princess Celestia, so first stop will have to be Canterlot.”
The thrill-seeking display flier seemed a little put out, but could still sense adventure racing up to meet her and knew that the best way of realising it would be to stick closely by Twilight’s side and take things at her pace.

The two friends took off from the nearest balcony side by side and Twilight directed them towards the station as they climbed and settled into a comfortable cruising speed that they could both maintain for the rest of the day if it was needed.
“The train from the Crystal Empire would have to come through Canterlot” reasoned Twilight “So if we follow the railway line north, then we could board it en route and ask the conductor, engineer and passengers if they have noticed anything unusual.”
“Yeah” replied Rainbow, her voice laden heavily with scepticism “If it’s coming. Don’t be surprised if we don’t see it is all.”

A long silence fell between them, each alone with their thoughts as they followed the snaking trail beneath them. Rainbow had been correct in her assessment; they had seen no trains and that meant that it had to be late – something that very rarely ever happened in Equestria.

When they reached the start of the long tunnel that led through the mountainside into Canterlot Station, they banked away and swooped in low over the pedestrian walkway that led into the heart of the city. The airspace immediately above this walkway was in fact a well-policed aerial highway with all pegasi sticking to the appropriate side to avoid collisions. There were still a few backwaters in Equestria where pegasi flew on the wrong side, but when in the nation’s capital, they had to learn to fit in fast.

Twilight and Rainbow flew in towards the spectacular white archway upon which stood a golden statue of Princess Celestia and a corresponding deep blue one of Princess Luna meeting in the middle over a symbol of joined sun and moon. Rainbow was itching to fly under this landmark monument for the thrill of it, a feat she could easily manage given her highly refined precision flying skills. Twilight on the other hoof, anticipated her impetuousness and just shot a disapproving glance that was received by an exaggerated roll of her friend’s eyes; she was a Princess after all, and could not be seen to be condoning reckless behaviour, especially in such a public place.

They touched down onto the courtyard of the Royal Castle in perfect synchronisation at a respectful distance from the guards stood at the entrance, who saluted smartly at the arrival of their high-profile guests. Twilight thanked them for their diligence as they moved aside to allow her and Rainbow through into the castle on their mission to find Princess Celestia and establish why she hadn’t responded to her earlier scroll. It was all so unlike her that Twilight couldn’t help feeling the knot in her stomach tighten with a growing sense of dread that she hoped was nothing more than needless over-reaction.

On their way along the corridor that led to the Throne Room, Celestia’s Personal Assistant, a very smartly presented stallion, came close to skittling them both over as he came fast down an adjoining corridor, clearly preoccupied.
“Princess Twilight!” he exclaimed in his slightly falsetto voice “Oh, how I need to talk to you!In here quickly, please!”
“Sure” replied Twilight uneasily “What’s the problem?”
“Not out here! In the room first, please!”

He opened a door next to them and they entered, noticing it to be elaborately furnished, but aside from the three of them, empty of occupants.
“What I have to tell you if highly sensitive” he continued.
“Hey look, you can trust Rainbow Dash if that’s what you mean” said Twilight leaping to her friend’s defence.
“Oh, you have no idea how pleased I am that it was you I almost knocked over…” he stammered “… I mean, not that I wanted to knock you over, but …”
“I get it” said Twilight, feeling impatience begin to rise inside her “What’s the problem?”
“Princess Celestia is missing!” he exclaimed  “Haven’t seen her since this morning. She hasn’t turned up for any of her meetings and I have run out of excuses.Thank goodness you showed up; perhaps you could stand in for her?”
“Hey now, wait a minute” said Twilight taking a step back “I don’t think my standing in for a few meetings is what’s needed right now; I think the bigger issue is finding her. Have you informed Princess Luna?”
“No, not yet.”
“Then it’s time we did.”


***


“So you see Luna” said Twilight having woken her fellow Princess, “Celestia has gone missing without leaving a note or word with anypony, Flurry Heart appears to have flown all the way from the Crystal Empire and the train from the Crystal Empire hasn’t arrived. I can’t help thinking that all these things are linked, and the answer lies to the north.”
“Sombra?” asked Luna.
“Perhaps. He is the biggest disturbance that’s ever happened to the Crystal Empire in recorded history” said Twilight “Unless you know different?”

“No. It all points to his having returned again” agreed Luna, her jaw striking a business-like profile that showed she was ready for action “If it is true, we must also assume that Cadence and Shining Armor have been overpowered or they would have surely interceded. We must go to the Crystal Empire and face him again.”

“Actually, I don’t think that’s the best idea. We must have a Princess stay behind and oil the wheels of politics, or ponies will get suspicious and that would result in a full-scale panic. As I haven’t had any exposure to politics, I don’t see how that could be me. Also, I’ve already proven myself a number of times; such as against Tirek, Discord, Chrysalis and, no offence Princess, but also Nightmare Moon, so I’m pretty adept in a tight corner – I really think I should be the one to go.”

Twilight’s words hit home, and they hurt, but there was no avoiding the truth that lay behind them. Luna made a mental note to ensure that they got Twilight more involved in politics in future so that this kind of thing did not happen again.

“Very well, Twilight Sparkle” announced Luna imperiously “But be sure thou dost not fail.”
“Thanks, Luna” smiled Twilight, giving her close friend a smile before turning on her hoof to let the Princess of the Night prepare for both day time and night time duties.

“So” said Rainbow eagerly as soon as her friend re-appeared “What did she say? You were in there long enough.”
“Are you ready for a challenge?” she answered.
“Oh yeah! Oh yeah! Oh yeah!” chanted the best flier in Equestria.
“You do realise we could be going up against Sombra once more, or something even worse?”
“Hey Twi, with my flying and your magic, we got it licked!”
“I admire your optimism Rainbow, but I didn’t think we should face it alone” tempered Twilight “Next stop, the barracks.”

Rainbow paused for a second with her head tilted slightly to one side as Twilight moved off, thinking about challenging her last statement, but thought better of it and turned to fall in behind her, catching up within a few eager steps. It would be cool to show off her awesomeness to the guards after all.
> 3 A Leader Emerges
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The two famous ponies entered the barracks and made right for the headquarters, guards snapping to attention at each checkpoint as they saw who their unannounced guests were. They walked straight in to the Joint Operations Room from where Twilight summoned the senior Officers from both the Royal Guard and the Night Guard and requested an herbal tea while she waited, offering similar light refreshment to Rainbow, who declined, mouth agape at how the ‘egghead’ was taking charge. She had never seen Twilight look so assertive.

The tea arrived, and she took a few sips as uniformed pegasi and Bat Ponies tumbled in to see what the Princess required of them. It wasn’t as if it was Celestia or Luna after all; she probably just wanted somepony to get a kite out of a tree or resolve some other constitutional crisis of similar insignificance.

She sat confidently on the raised stage at the front of the room as her audience assembled, Rainbow marvelling at her friend’s self-confidence, knowing what was to come, but unsure of how she would deliver it. Once everypony was gathered in front of her she took one final sip of tea as the last remaining whispered conversations died away.

“Pegasi of the Royal Guard and Bat Ponies of the Night Guard, I come to give you news that I do not want communicated beyond this room. You are all highly disciplined, so I will not insult your integrity; Princess Celestia has disappeared.”

There were gasps all around and shocked comments were exchanged among the audience. Twilight turned to jelly inside and felt her mouth going dry, so covered her nerves by pretending to take a further sip of tea from her empty cup. Because she lifted the cup in her magic rather than by touch, it did not betray the trembling that she felt coursing through her body and allowed her to look controlled as the speculative chatter died away.

“I have spoken with Princess Luna, and she has agreed to stay here in Canterlot to raise the sun and the moon and undertake all the Royal duties that both she and Princess Celestia would do to keep Equestria running. I have reason to believe that the cause of Princess Celestia’s disappearance lies within the Crystal Empire and am mounting a rescue mission for which I require your renowned fighting skills.”

More chatter broke out and Twilight raised her forehoof “You could be right, Sombra’s involvement can’t be ruled out; it would certainly be advisable to prepare for the worst eventuality.”

“Now, I understand you would feel happier under the command of one of the senior Princesses to whom you have sworn allegiance, and whom you serve without question. I too have faced up to enemies of Equestria and defeated them, sometimes completely on my own, but in following me you can best serve the Royal Sisters by liberating Princess Celestia from whatever forces of evil have taken her.”

“Time is against us if we are to fly to the Crystal Empire today, but I dare not postpone until tomorrow because I do not yet know what we are facing. We must realise that such a delay could result in Princess Luna being abducted too.”

“Consequently, we must act soonest and to this end I require you to provide me with a ground attack platoon and a combat air squadron, one each drawn from the Royal Guards and the Night Guards; I want to ensure we have the best firepower for whatever we find whether by day or by night. Further, you will bring the remainder of your guards to alert to protect Canterlot and send word to the guard outposts to go to alert and protect all the key targets in their areas, especially the towns.”

Everypony present was shocked to hear such clear authority radiating from the youngest of the four ruling Princesses; somepony who had been but a filly herself only a few short years ago.

Rainbow broke the stunned silence by clapping her hooves together, and then a ripple of applause and stamping hooves broke out in the room. In a matter of minutes, Twilight had shattered the illusion they had held of her being precious and immature and replaced this image with somepony they could work with, somepony they would follow – a leader.
The Officers spilled out to ready their guards and prepare for a hasty departure, neither Royal Guard nor their friendly rivals the Night Guard wanting the dishonour of being the last to be ready.

“How did I do?” asked Twilight with a vulnerable smile on her face, aching for approval “Did I sound convincing? I read through ‘A Beginner’s Guide to Equestria’s Military’ and ‘Motivational Speaking for Dummies’ earlier today in case it would be needed. I do hope it worked.”
“Twi!” exclaimed Rainbow enthusiastically “You so motivated me, I would follow you to the ends of Equestria!”
“It may just come to that yet” said Twilight, her beaming smile fading as a grim look spread over her face.

The two friends turned to walk outside where the guards were mustering, Twilight feeling uncomfortably tense as she knew that time was tight.
“Are you ready for this, Rainbow?” she asked, “You know you don’t have to come if you don’t want to.”
“Are you kidding?” she retorted, “No way I’m going to let some adventure happen without bringing my awesomeness along too!”
Twilight had her ‘yes’.

Rainbow followed Twilight out onto the balcony to see the guards forming up in the courtyard below them into four distinct groups as requested; two each of twenty combat fliers and thirty ground attackers. The force of one hundred guards arranged ten by ten in rank and file looked small given the potential scale of the task ahead of them, but Twilight knew it was important to keep a large body of guards in reserve to protect the towns and other vulnerable targets. Besides, if they were facing powerful magic, she reasoned, no amount of extra pegasi or Bat ponies would be able to help anyway.

“Rainbow” whispered Twilight “I’ve got to address these guards as their Commander. I’ve never done anything like this before.”

“Hey, don’t sweat it. You read that motivational speeches book, didn’t you? And look at the great job you did at the briefing earlier” Rainbow paused to let her message sink in “You’re every inch a leader Twi. You don’t need to say much; remember the ‘Yetisburg Address’ was only 272 words long; why do you think all colts and fillies have to learn it at school? It’s because it’s great Twi, and so are you; now get out there and show them what you’re made of!”
“Wow, Rainbow!” gasped Twilight “That’s pretty motivational right there.”

The two friends shared a brief nuzzle, and then the guards’ Royal Commander strode out confidently to address them. Last minute adjustments to flight suits and armour had just finished and as they saw the lilac alicorn come into view on the balcony, the last conversations petered out. She stood looking resolute and although her insides were turning somersaults she was determined to be the leader that they needed.

From her window, Princess Luna looked out as Twilight took control.
"My" she said to herself with new respect in her voice "Look at how thou hast grown up."

“Members of the esteemed Royal Guard and Night Guard, brave ponies all" began Twilight "I have summoned you as the proud members of these two most highly respected Regiments to provide vital military support which I fear may be necessary to address a threat facing Equestria.”

“You need to know that Princess Celestia has disappeared, possibly taken prisoner, and we must face the possibility that Princess Luna could be taken by the same pony or group of ponies just as easily. We must therefore, without delay, find and rescue Princes Celestia and take down whoever or whatever is behind this outrage for the safety of all our citizens.”

“I have reason to believe that our trail starts in the Crystal Empire, and it is there that we must fly to face whatever awaits us for Princess Celestia, for Princess Luna and for Equestria!”

The guards erupted in a chorus of euphoric cheering as Twilight looked to the two Majors and the two Squadron Leaders in charge of the respective platoons and squadrons, and upon receiving positive signals from each, sprang into the air accompanied by Rainbow Dash to lead them northwards, to the Crystal Empire, and their destiny.

They flew north, the Bat Ponies becoming more comfortable in the failing light as their pegasi colleagues with day-adapted eyes began to struggle with the onset of darkness. Whilst the Night Guard units maintained their rigidly fixed formations, the Royal Guard spaced themselves further apart to ensure that there were no collisions in the poor light; nopony wanted that to happen, especially with the prospect of coming down in the wilderness below.

Off to their right, the familiar silvery orb clawed its way into the rich pageantry of the star-flecked night sky, providing much needed illumination and a reliable navigation aid as well as confirmation that Princess Luna was still safe and in control. They still had time.

The moonlight glinted menacingly off the guards’ armour and their massed weaponry. These ponies were not farmers or poets; they were the best and most highly trained fighters Equestria had to offer, their ability with weapons and their courage never in doubt.

For all their rivalry; the illicit drinking sessions, their inherently competitive natures and their sometimes boisterous interplay, each pony knew that whoever was next to them in battle, be they Bat Pony or pegasus would fight to the death to defend any and all of their colleagues. Indeed, every one of them had taken an oath before Princess Celestia or Princess Luna to that effect, and none would deliver anything less. Such was their unspoken bond; their pledged solidarity through life until death.

Today they had been inspired in recognising a new leader, a pony who hadn’t even had her wings that long, but one who had none the less motivated them through her words and her actions. True leadership was a quality difficult to define, but whatever it required, Twilight Sparkle, the Princess of Friendship had it within her. They liked what they saw, and they were all committed to following her as surely as they would serve the other senior Princesses.

Wingbeat by wingbeat they surged forwards, each carrying loads that most ponies couldn’t even lift, let alone contemplate carrying long distances. Twilight screamed inwardly at the time it was taking, fearing every second could be the last for Princess Luna in Canterlot, whisked away by whatever malevolent force had claimed her sister. Damn it all – she didn’t even know she was leading them in the right direction! She fought to keep her inner demons of self-doubt under control, but Rainbow flying closest to her picked upon the vibe.

“Hey Twi” she said, “Didn’t know you were expert at night flying too.”
“I read a book on it” came the dismissive answer.
“Yeah - figures” replied her friend “Hey, I bet Nyx would love to have been flying with us – night is her element, right?”

“I hate to admit it Rainbow, but right now I would feel so much happier if she was with us as Nightmare Moon. Although it tore me apart to see that sweet little filly inherit the twisted mantle of distorted evil, she fought for us and with us against the monsters of the Everfree at such personal cost.”

“Yeah” concurred Rainbow “She’s pretty cool. I remember facing off a lupus minor, and Nightmare Moon, I mean Nyx, came right out of the sky and T-boned it in the side! Whammm! And then there was that lupus major right at the end of the battle when we all thought the town was clear – remember?”
“And do you remember the exploding Pinkie Pie dummies?” chipped in Twilight, recalling fondly the party pony’s flair for improvisation.
“Yeah” said Rainbow wistfully “Good times. Good times.”

“I am very proud of her” said Twilight “you know?”
“And she’s proud of you too, Twi. Leading the Royal Guard and the Night Guard into battle is a pretty cool thing to do.”
“But what if I’m wrong?” confided Twilight.

“Look Twi, somepony’s got to take charge. Flurry Heart has left her parents to fly down to you and the train from the Crystal Empire hasn’t been seen. It all adds up, and even if it’s wrong these are the only leads you’ve got. It’s the right call and there was nopony else to make it. And your motivational speaking was, like, almost as awesome as a sonic rainboom!”

“Thanks Rainbow” said Twilight, feeling a lot better “You know, you’re pretty motivational yourself.”
“Yeah, you’re right” agreed Rainbow “One of my many strengths.”
“Along with your modesty?”

At this, both friends giggled and Rainbow smiled inwardly, happy to have restored her friend’s mojo. She knew they would all be relying on her being fully on top of her game when they encountered whatever was waiting for them, and that they all stood a much better chance with a confident leader.
> 4 The Triangulum Spell
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The detachment of Royal Guard and Night Guard under the command of The Princess of Friendship flew on through the night, keeping the railway line below them as a guide. Twilight was performing a constant stream of mental mathematics, juggling distance versus estimated time of flight and had concluded that by now they should have been coming up to the outskirts of the Crystal Empire. What was increasingly disturbing her was that there was no light from where she calculated the city should be, just the same barren blackness over which they had been flying for hours.

Suddenly one of the Bat Ponies called out and everypony trained their ears to listen, heads swivelling on high alert. Word spread quickly; down on the line ahead of them was the train. With no lights on, it was difficult to see, but Bat Ponies were renowned for the unparalleled night vision.

Twilight’s horn glowed gently as she cast a spell looking for traces of magic and suddenly gave a yelp, ordering the guards to turn sharply and descend. Without any hint of querying her orders, they all obeyed and followed her down to land close together on the railway line a hundred yards short of the derelict looking train.

“Gentlemen, there is a forcefield between us and the train” informed Twilight “If we had kept going even for a few more seconds, we would have hit it as solidly as a brick wall, and we wouldn’t all be quite so happy and comfortable right now.”

Murmurs of approval broke out as they all realised what a close call that had been; multiple injuries would have by necessity tied up a number of able bodied survivors and decimated their force before it had even reached the target.

“One thing this does tell us is that we’re on the right track, if you excuse the pun.”
Twilight emitted a cute little snort and mentally face hoofed at her poorly timed use of wit, but the guards humoured her and gave a polite ripple of little sniggers.

“I am going to have to find a way through this barrier” she continued, reverting to her more assertive tone “But we can expect that whatever magic I use will alert whoever set it up in the first place, and we will have lost the element of surprise, so from now on we must all be on a heightened state of alert.”

Twilight focused her energy and her horn lit once more as a stream of magenta projected forward, spreading outwards when it hit the invisible barrier and lighting it up in front of them. Now they could all see it for the first time, they gasped in unison at the size of the obstruction and suddenly appreciated how close they had got to hitting it.

The magical energy pulsed and modulated, lighting up the wall with an ever-changing pattern as ripples of different colours radiated outwards from the point where her aura made contact, Twilight sweeping it around while she tried different combinations of alicorn magic to probe for weaknesses across its vast expanse. The ponies that didn’t watch the amazing light display turned to see the equally impressive sight of Twilight; hooves planted firmly on the ground, brow furrowed in deep concentration as a cascade of sparks flew out from the tip of her horn.

Eventually, the visage rippling in front of them shimmered and Twilight ceased her exertions to recover her composure.
“OK; we’ve only got a few minutes to get in, so come on” ordered Twilight “But first, I need two Bat Ponies to fly back immediately to Canterlot and inform Princess Luna of what we’ve found.”
Nopony wanted to back away from the adventure that lay before them, so the Night Guard Squadron Leader nominated two ‘volunteers’ and despatched them on their way before stepping through the forcefield to join the others waiting for him.

“Do you think they know we’re here?” asked Rainbow in an unnecessarily quiet whisper.
“I’m guessing that the light show I made stood out even more clearly than a sonic rainboom” replied Twilight, making no obvious effort to soften her voice “So I think we can safely say ‘yes’.”

They all walked the few yards to the train as a group to see if it afforded any clues of life on the inside of the forcefield, and one by one noticed the faces of those inside, unmoving and unblinking. A couple of Bat Ponies were ordered inside to check it out and sprang up into the carriage, noting immediately that it looked like a still from a movie; a moment frozen in time. Some ponies had been caught in mid conversation, others reading newspapers while a group of colts and fillies sat together playing a game of cards.

One of the Bat Ponies checked for vital signs; breathing, pulse, temperature, but there was nothing. The positions they adopted gave no indication of their having died, but unlikely as it seemed, they appeared to be in stasis. Twilight jumped aboard and rapidly came to the same conclusion, seeing how the actions of daily life had suddenly been suspended and a single word crossed her lips, “Sombra.”

She used her position from the open door of the carriage to address the guards:
“Gentlemen, the carriage is full of ponies going about their business on a train ride, but they have all been frozen in time. This has happened here before when King Sombra was banished and he stopped time for all the Crystal Ponies he had enslaved, only for them to be awakened a thousand years later – I guess you all know the story.”

“This magic bears all the hoofmarks of Sombra’s meddling once again, so I can only assume that he is who we are facing this time too. He is a wily operator and particularly good at illusion magic, so be on your guard and follow me; we’re going to the castle.”

They took off at Twilight’s command, heading towards the centre of the great capital city over progressively more populated settlements and then emerging over the busy suburbs. Although it was night, the metropolis was unnaturally dark; no lights at any window or along any street. Instead, they saw just the silhouettes of familiar buildings and an ever-increasing number of eerie pony shaped statues that they knew were citizens fixed in time. This then, was the undying hell that had once been the vibrant heart of the Crystal Empire.

Twilight had a strong suspicion where she would find a light on; a porch light guiding them in as inevitably as a moth to a flame. The trick would be not to get their wings scorched.

Apprehension rising, she led the guards inexorably toward the castle, the jagged ruggedness of which added to the sinister sense of foreboding that was clawing to escape her subdued subconscious and burst out to overwhelm her with the terror she worked so hard to suppress.

Sure enough, light spilled out from the main entrance; an invitation for them to step into what was undoubtedly a trap.

Twilight set down a block away from the castle to confer with the Officers present, sharing with them the detailed layout of the castle and warning them in no uncertain terms about the powerful illusion spells she and Spike had encountered in there before. Having briefed them with the intel available, she listened intently to the four Officers; favouring the two Majors for their knowledge of hoof-to-hoof combat likely to be needed for the assault and the two Squadron Leaders for their knowledge of the tactical picture outside the castle. They agreed to split their forces across three assault teams, one a diversion through the main entrance whilst the two main teams would access the castle from the Royal Balcony and the parapet where Twilight and Spike had found the Crystal Heart before.

When the Officers went to brief their guards, Rainbow closed up to Twilight and gave her a gentle nuzzle to ease her tension.
“You’re doing really well, Twi” she reassured “Which team are you going with?”
“Probably best I’m with the team going in through the front door” responded Twilight after a brief pause, “There’s bound to be traps that way, and they’ll need my magic to escape.”
“Want some company?” asked Rainbow cheerily.
“Yes” said Twilight appreciatively “Yes, I would like that.”

She felt so totally underprepared. She wished all the Mane 6 could be there with the Elements of Harmony and she wished she had been able to bring unicorns to help with the magic, but there hadn’t been time. She was however glad that Rainbow Dash, her friend, her flying buddy and the bearer of the Element of Loyalty would be beside her. That one simple act of companionship sweetened the bitterness and she did not feel alone at the prospect of going into this battle.

Once everypony had been briefed on where to be, what to do, when to do it and what to expect, they set off in their teams to make it happen.

The frontal assault team made the short hop to the castle’s main entrance, and Twilight led with her horn lit so as to detect malevolent magic around them. As had been agreed during the planning, half of those present flew slowly just in case there were pressure activated traps on the floor while the other half walked forward in case there were spells aimed at ponies in flight. Nothing happened; no spells and no traps, so the party continued in to seek out the Throne Room.

Outside, the other two teams tried their respective entrances, but there was a forcefield at the doors of the Royal Balcony and another sealing off the parapet. It was clear they were all meant to going through the main entrance, so both teams met up to determine what to do next, despondent that their plan had fallen apart already.

Twilight led the way into the Throne Room and was taken aback by what she saw. A black unicorn wearing armour covered in an ermine trimmed red cape was sat casually upon Cadence’s throne, to his side a blank faced unicorn. On the floor in front of them was a magically etched triangulum symbol that Twilight did not recognise, but at two of the corners were two alicorns she knew well, both frozen on the spot, struggling to escape.

Cadence had her horn facing the centre of the triangulum and had clearly been trying hard to pull her head away, her hooves braced on the floor, mouth open and a look of pure terror in her eyes. Celestia was pulling back with all four legs, her face downwards, showing that she had been trying with all her strength to pull away. Twilight was grateful that she couldn’t see her face if the expression on Cadence was anything to go by.

“Sombra!” she called angrily.
“You are most observant Princess Twilight” he gloated in acknowledgement “The last time we met you were merely the bearer of the Element of Magic … now look at you, Princess.”

“Attack!” cried Twilight trying to run forwards, but her hooves were fixed to the floor. Quickly she turned and saw that Rainbow and the guards were all frozen in space, the pegasi and Bat Ponies who had been flying, hanging suspended in mid-flight.

“You see Princess Twilight, it’s just you and me, and we have unfinished business” he spoke with understated menace.
“What have you done?” she demanded.

“We have time enough to discuss your situation at length” he gloated “But I may grow weary if I have to listen to you for too long and just proceed to the end game.”

Twilight had no cards to play so she suppressed her internal rage, trying to read the terror on her sister-in-law’s face for any clues that could help her. Cadence’s face was widely regarded to be the most beautiful in Equestria and her countenance was always radiant, but the fear she saw was so awful, she found she couldn’t look any longer.

Sombra laughed demonically watching the colour drain from Twilight’s face.

“When you banished me, a little piece of my horn was left behind. I have worked through its presence to go through old spells of which you know nothing. Through slow and diligent study, I learned about the old ways and brought myself back to see you again. This time I have a few extra little tricks to ensure I succeed where you prevailed last time. In fact, I have been the model student Princess Twilight.”

“The stasis spell you see around you, you have seen before; the focused triangulation spell in front of you, you have not. It requires the willing assistance of three alicorns to deliver all of their power at once to make it work, and will ensure the total enslavement of all the ponies in Equestria, not just the Crystal Empire.”
Sombra paused, allowing Twilight to absorb the magnitude of what he had achieved and where he intended it to lead.

“You know Spell Nexus, I believe?”
Twilight shuddered as she remembered his delivering Nightmare Moon’s tainted ‘blessing’ onto her as well as all ‘The Children of Nightmare’.

“You see, he has a rather special bond with Princess Celestia which is why I could teleport her here to help me achieve my aims. I tried her sister too, but it appeared she was in the dream realm where I could not reach her, so I settled on Princess Cadence’s infant as the third alicorn.”

“You monster!” she screamed, unable to hold back.

“It looked like it was going to work, but when the power was raised almost to its maximum, she failed, and all the power flowed straight back into her. It blasted her right through the roof. I thought it had killed her, but no, she escaped.”

“How could you do that to her, she’s only a foal!” cried Twilight, tears of anger rolling down her muzzle.

Sombra laughed deeply and without any trace of pity.
“I knew where she would go, of course; straight to her foalsitter who would come running to help. You are so predictable Princess Twilight, and now you have kindly come to help me enslave all of Equestria. I want your magic.”

“I would rather die!” she screamed.

“Yes. That is a side benefit of the spell too once all the power is drained from you. Then, with three of the most powerful alicorns dead, there can be no meaningful resistance and I will reign unopposed throughout eternity.”

“I do give you one choice Princess Twilight” he offered.

She was too numb to prompt him to continue. She contemplated the raw power that Flurry Heart must have absorbed from Celestia and her mother. She knew what it had felt like to take all that power when she had fought Tirek, but to feed that into an innocent foal was beyond redemption.

“I have heard that the other alicorns hold your magic in high regard. Come, stand next to me and share what you know to make me stronger” he said gesturing to the space beside him.

Twilight was faced with either causing the imminent slavery of all the ponies of Equestria and the death of herself, Celestia and Cadence, or playing for time and making Sombra even more powerful. She had to play his game and maybe some rescue could be affected in that time; he would be omnipotent when he had killed her anyway, so giving him more magic would be a meaningless concept as he couldn’t effectively be even more omnipotent.

She nodded.

“A wise choice, Princess Twilight” he gloated “Please do not try anything heroic; it is insulting to think that I have not considered your every possible action.”

Twilight moved slowly and warily towards the throne and stood by the side of the seated unicorn as directed. She recoiled from his strong musky scent; it was like nothing she had smelled on a stallion before and cloyed in her throat making her feel sick. She had never stopped to consider what he smelled like before, but the experience brought home to her the sheer immediacy of the situation and she was rendered temporarily speechless.

“I … I could use a glass of water please” she stammered.

Sombra’s horn glowed as he conjured a glass in front of her and leered malevolently as she sipped from it.
“Now we will begin” he commanded.
“OK Sombra” she said slowly, wrestling with her conscience in the light of just having promised to share her magic with the most evil unicorn in recorded history “What do you want me to tell you about?”

“No, Princess Twilight” he revelled “You misunderstand. I do not intend for you to tell me, so you can leave bits out or attempt to misdirect me. Dear me, no. I will draw it from your mind by an extraction spell.”
“What? No!” protested Twilight “You can’t!”

“I hardly think you are in any position to argue” cackled Sombra “Especially as you already promised me. Really, what would your mentor say about reneging on your promises Princess Twilight.”

“I’m sure she would support me if I promised to kill you!”

“Really? Such a threat coming from the Princess of Friendship herself. I am surprised at you. It seems your suitability to hold such a position of responsibility is in question. Princess Celestia would doubtless tell you that you had failed; failed as a Princess and failed in your pathetic rescue attempt.”

“Enjoyable as it is to relax in your company, we waste too much time” he said with menace “Now open your mind to me!”

Twilight tried to run but found herself fixed to the ground. She twisted and turned with all of her strength trying to free herself, but through her peripheral vision she could see him slowly turn his head and point his horn directly at her. With one last pull, she strained her every sinew and just as she realised it still wouldn’t be enough to break free, she felt his aura reach out to her and screamed in terror.

Just as Twilight was about to lose consciousness she became aware of multiple whistling and zipping sounds around her, presumably some feature of the spell. She could have looked up, but she knew she had failed; she had taken on too much and been defeated by Sombra who would repay her overreached ambition by enslaving the whole of Equestria – and it was all her fault.
> 5 Into the Labyrinth
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

While Twilight waited for the welcoming caress of oblivion to descend over her, she suddenly heard Sombra roar and felt a sharp pain in her foreleg that made her snap her eyes open. The sight that greeted her made her heart leap; pegasi and Bat Ponies were flooding in to the Throne Room through the hole in the roof where Flurry Heart must have been shot through!

The guards wasted no time in singling out their target and launched volley after volley of spears, arrows and crossbow bolts at the distracted unicorn. One of the projectiles had ricocheted off the floor and caught Twilight’s foreleg, jolting her back to reality. Suddenly the spell holding her was broken and she was free, no longer rooted to the spot and sprang to the attack, providing magical support to the physical attacks being prosecuted hard by the guards.

Sombra had been complacent; he had sealed all the obvious doors and windows that served as entrances to the castle, but had completely overlooked the hole in the roof. With his guard down ready to steal Twilight’s magic, he had been unprepared for the attack and had taken valuable seconds switching his attention away from Twilight and onto the attacking guards.

Although his armour had deflected most of the projectiles, he had still been struck in a number of places and felt sharp shocks of pain from all over his body. He knew he had to defend himself and summoned a further use of the stasis spell, but when he focused, his distinctive aura of corrosive green tinged purple bubbles did not appear and the guards continued to fly at him. With sudden shock he realised that it hadn’t worked!

He quickly took stock of the situation and looked on the floor around him. There, amid the pile of quickly accumulating debris, he saw a sight that shocked him to his core, the splintered remains of his discoloured horn lay discarded on the floor.

Cursing his luck that some weapon had found its mark so effectively, he realised that such a messy fracture would take time to regenerate, time in which he could employ only the most basic magic. He knew that in time it was possible to regain some limited mastery over magic with a broken horn, but that would take time, and time was something he did not have.
In desperation, he cast an invisibility spell and ran, the echoes of his hoofsteps seemingly coming from every direction and the guards ceased their fire as they no longer had a target to aim at.

“Where’d he go?” vocalised one guard, articulating the thoughts of all of them.
“There!” shouted Twilight “Follow the blood spots!”
Sure enough, Sombra had taken a number of flesh wounds which had conspired together to betray where he had gone as surely as if he had left a trail of breadcrumbs.

“There!” repeated Twilight “Do you see it?”
The guards swept in once they knew what they were looking for and followed the intermittent red dots on the polished floor.

Twilight allowed herself the luxury of catching her breath. It was over; the guards would be able to round up Sombra quickly and secure him until he faced justice.  All she had to do was break the stasis spells before returning home, happy that she had played her part in a job well done. She felt a shudder run through her body as the adrenaline started to dissipate and shivered just a little. She would soon have Flurry Heart home with her parents and restore Celestia to her rightful place and everything would be back to normal.

“Princess!” called one of the guards “We’ve lost him!”

Twilight’s relief crashed around her hooves. She had been foalish to think it was all over; this was Sombra’s home ground after all. With renewed determination she flapped over to where she had been called from.

“There Princess” reported the guard “It disappears straight into the wall.”
“We have to get to him fast” said Twilight “The longer it takes us to find him, the more he can regenerate and the bigger the problem we will have to deal with.”

Her horn glowed as she probed for secret levers and hidden mechanisms, scanning around the wall where the blood spots stopped.
“Aha!” she exclaimed, reaching in to raise a magically concealed latch.

The wall rotated effortlessly revealing a dark passageway. Twilight lit her horn and saw how the dirt had recently been gifted with a set of hoofprints and knew she had found his trail.
“Come on!” she called “Follow me!”

The passageway split into three and Twilight had to stop to see which way the fresh tracks led. She knew that none of them could afford to be caught between these walls if Sombra regained enough power to close them together; that thought alone keeping her highly motivated as she looked for clues.

She went on ahead rather than left or right and shortly found herself on the mechanism side of another door, this time with no magic shrouding its operation. She pulled the latch and Twilight marvelled at how quietly and effortlessly these secret doors could be opened compared with all the rest in the castle that typically screamed and ground their displeasure at being called upon to work.

Light spilled in through the doorway showing her that she was looking out into the Great Hall, and having quickly looked each way for further traces of Sombra, jumped out to allow those surging forward to spill out behind her. With agonising slowness, the column of guards flowed through the secret door and began to build their strength in the hall alongside Twilight, all looking around uneasily.

Twilight’s horn lit and her magenta aura spread outwards, carrying a ‘reveal invisible’ spell along the length of the Great Hall. Suddenly, a guard next to Twilight shouted and she broke her spell before it had progressed fully down the length of the room, and looked upwards to see one of the massive chandeliers in freefall coming down towards them. Startled, she redirected her energy into a levitation spell, which because it was hurried did not arrest the fall of the heavy metal structure neatly as anticipated but tipped it over and sent it crashing across the hall.

All around, they heard Sombra’s sinister disembodied voice laughing at them scornfully, and although it was clear he was in the room, they could not see him. Twilight returned her attention to the ‘reveal invisible’ spell and sent another wave of magenta energy along the room, this time catching somepony in its grasp, making them glow.

“Fire!” cried the Royal Guard Major standing a few lengths away from Twilight immediately upon seeing the illuminated form, and in response a hail of projectiles was directed swiftly towards the rapidly fading glow.
The laughing stopped and galloping hooves could be heard once more, throwing down the gauntlet for another round of ‘cat and mouse’.

With the tell-tale glow having now dissipated and their quarry on the move again, the Major barked out the “Hold your fire!” command and the guards responded immediately by flying directly towards the point at which their target had last been seen. Even though their wings were faster than the fleeing unicorn’s legs, he still gave them the slip and once more they were forced to look for blood spots and other traces that could indicate where he had gone this time.

Twilight flew over and inspected the scene with the help of her magic and quickly discovered another secret door; the castle that she thought she knew seemed to be alive with secret doors and passageways that she doubted even Princess Cadence knew about. Carefully she opened the hidden door and lit her horn before going in, the guards following close behind.

After about twenty feet she saw a misaligned wooden rectangle on the floor and immediately recognised it as a trapdoor that hadn’t been properly shut; clearly, he had followed the path down to wherever it led, so that was to be their path too. Without hesitation, she pulled the trapdoor back and saw a flight of stone stairs extending as far as the light from her horn would allow and set off down them, noticing that the air seemed somehow damper and mustier than it had before. This was clearly one part of the castle that had received few visitors over the years.

At the bottom of the stairs she placed her first forehoof onto an unkempt floor covered in a random assortment of gravel, burnt embers and straw, underneath which she assumed it was earth because her hoofsteps came back sounding muffled rather than echoing sharply as she would have expected from flagstones. There was a definite chill down here coupled with a pervading dampness that made her suddenly feel on edge, so she cast a light spell on the whole room, the brightness blinding her temporarily.

When her eyes began to adjust, she could see exactly what this room was, and sincerely doubted that it would ever make it onto the mainstream tourist trail, although a few adult special interest parties may gain something from the experience. It was a torture chamber equipped with all sorts of mediaeval looking implements for causing pain and discomfort, if not far worse.

Further investigation showed that the room was not simply one that had been closed up and forgotten about, but that there were ponies still restrained in these hellish devices, those that could move turning to face the new arrivals and some even groaned a weak request for help .

Twilight was so stunned at what she saw, she forgot temporarily about Sombra, but snapped herself quickly back to the task at hoof; something was wrong about the look and the feel of the place. Ordinarily, she would have been the first to help out these unfortunate souls, but something played on her mind and she quickly cast another spell. Suddenly, her eyes grew wide in stark fear.

“Quickly!” she shouted “About turn! We ’ve got to get out of here now! IT’S A TRAP!”

The guards piling into the room were unable to stop with the momentum of those following on behind who hadn’t heard the command, while those trying to force their way back up could not fight the tide that pushed them inexorably back down again. It was a shambles.

From every angle all around them they suddenly head Sombra’s sinister echoing laugh. Twilight shouted her order again, this time with more than a hint of desperation evident. Up above, word had got through and guards emerging from the torture chamber flooded back into the passageway. One of the guards in the room next to Twilight suddenly grabbed her and thrust her headlong up the stairs over the heads of the others very much like Shining Armor had done with Cadence once, and she gave out a startled “Eeeep!” sound in response, crashing unceremoniously into the walls of the corridor above.

Behind her, the aperture through which she had just been propelled started to grow opaque and the guards beneath found a solid barrier crystallising before their eyes. In a few seconds, the hole had disappeared completely, revealing nothing but a flagstone floor under the wooden trapdoor. It had gone, and along with it all the guards who had not got back up the stairs in time.

Twilight was angry, powered by a fury that few had ever seen. There would be no mercy for Sombra now, Princess of Friendship or not, he was going to pay.

She pushed forward along the passageway, seething to herself with a boiling anger and blasted the door that she found at the end clear off its hinges rather than stopping to undo it.

“WHERE ARE YOU SOMBRA?” she demanded “I AM GOING TO TRACK YOU DOWN AND SO HELP ME, I WILL DESTROY YOU FOR WHAT YOU HAVE DONE!”

Even the guards furthest back in the passageway heard her this time and looked at each other with surprise, her display of raw emotion earning her the respect from any guards who may have harboured unspoken doubts about her commitment. That level of raw emotion coupled with her alicorn magic meant she was primed and ready to explode in some direction or other, and they were glad to be on her side.

Twilight knew now that Sombra had come this way; the trapdoor had been a diversion, a cruel but effective one. She had recognised the pleas for help as being in an arcane tongue and that the ragged clothes being worn by the victims were of a type that was a long way off contemporary fashion. Her spell had confirmed the time charm on the torture chamber and realisation had quickly hit her that it must have been projected through time, and that it had been summoned to trap them all and then send them off through time once more to end up only Celestia knew where. It was all so obvious now she came to think about it; there was no other exit, so Sombra would never have gone in there in the first place because he could never have got out! It had been the perfect distraction for somepony as naturally compassionate as her, and very nearly claimed her.

She was truly sorry she couldn’t help the victims, but even more so that brave guards had been lost, including the one who had recognised they were in danger and thrown her clear. She hadn’t even known his name, but made a vow to honour him as soon as it was safe.
> 6 Retribution
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Twilight furiously cast spell after spell trying to regain the trail that would lead to Sombra. She knew she had to work fast, because if the torture chamber trap had not been prepared in advance, then it meant that his powers had recovered far more than she had expected, and he simply had to be stopped before he got any stronger.

She found a faint trail and noted that there were no longer spots of blood on the floor. Either he had bandaged himself or he had managed to regenerate physically as well as magically; she prayed it wasn’t the latter.

Suddenly she became aware of a fluttering movement behind a hanging tapestry on the side of the room they had just come from, and not the direction she had been looking in. She kicked herself for having missed the obvious ploy and blasted the rail holding the elaborate historical embroidery in place, the shattered metal rail tumbling to the ground, but the noise being muffled by the restraining effect of the unwinding tapestry that acted like a pillow.

“Come on!” she shouted, “This way!”
Once again, the guards entered another passageway, starting to feel as if a course in navigating narrow mazes would have been more appropriate than the close quarters combat in which they were so adept.

This time, Twilight found the door at the end of the passageway open on its hinges, inviting her to step out into the Great Hall once more. She cast a spell where she stood at the end of the passageway from where she had a good view across most of the hall, but there was no trace of him.

He had to be in this room, he just had to be, she told herself. She knew she couldn’t stay where she was lest Sombra close the walls up on her and the guards. She also knew he thought he had the element of surprise and would be waiting for her. This meant she had the chance to cast one spell, and one only before he could hit her with whatever hideous necromancy he had in mind. She thought quickly and chose the one spell that seemed most fitting; one that would repay him with whatever generosity or malevolence that he was intending to cast upon her, a ‘reflect magic’ spell. In that way at least, he would be in charge of his own destiny; provided her plan worked.

With her heart in her mouth, Twilight sprang out of the passageway facing the direction hidden by the door from where she had been standing, casting her spell in mid-flight.

Before her hooves hit the ground, she had been hit by a volley of purple bubbles tinged with green. This was just what she had hoped for; it meant he was there and just about to get a nasty shock. The spell collided with her aura then reflected back towards a blank looking section of wall, but impacted something before it got there; the spellcaster himself.

Sombra howled as his writhing form became visible right where his spell had found him. He struggled against his rising pain to defuse the darker elements of the magic, but was unable to neutralise them all completely and succumbed slowly to his own stasis spell, captured in a contorted pose trying to escape his creeping ossification.

Twilight stared down at him, savouring the poetic justice that had just been served on him. She observed that his horn had indeed started to regenerate as she had feared, and theorised that whilst this may have given him the power to cast his spells, it may have contributed to their being slower to respond as it drew upon his own magical aura to rebuild its power. As she stood watching him, she pondered about how long it had taken him to freeze and how slowly the torture chamber had disappeared, and how close she had been to getting caught in that hellish room.
“Interesting” she mused, as the observational scientist within her took over from the warrior leader.

“Major, Squadron Leader” she said in quietly measured tones “I want you to look around the castle for a horn cover; it’s something used on unicorns to prevent them from using their magic; either to protect medical staff from the wayward spells of mentally ill unicorns or for disabling dangerous criminals. When I start bringing everypony out of stasis, I don’t want to have to round him up again. I suggest you try the sick bay and the cells in the first instance.”

Both Officers saluted smartly and detailed teams of their guards to fly off in different directions to carry out Twilight’s orders.

Twilight sat on her haunches and looked at Sombra, alert to any indication that could suggest he had been successful in turning his magic against the spell that held him, but none came. However, she kept a whole list of spells rehearsed ready just in case he was somehow to make a move of any kind.

Within ten minutes a pair of pegasi returned with a horn cover as requested and Twilight fixed it firmly onto Sombra’s horn.
“Now tie him tight” she ordered, “And remember once I lift the stasis spell he will recover too, so make sure you use slip knots that will let you tighten him as he begins to move; I do not want him getting away. And do not under any circumstance leave him unattended.”

Then as an afterthought she added “Take him to the Throne Room. It would be best if Princess Celestia and Princess Cadence could confront him as soon as they recover. I suspect it would do them good to deal with him personally."

With everything in order, Twilight set off to the library to find out how to unfreeze the stasis spell.


***


“Let’s see now” said Twilight to herself flipping through the alphabetically listed contents in a likely looking spell book “Startling spell – Starwort applications – Stasimon spell … Ah! Here it is – Stasis spell.”

She ran her forehoof along each line as she read it, making occasional “ooooh” and “aaaah” sounds as she got to grips with its intricacies. Finally, she rocked back where she was sitting with a smile creeping across her face, “So that’s how it’s done then” she said triumphantly.

She reread the spell right through once more just to make sure she had got it right. She remembered all too vividly what had happened when she had cast the first half of a teleportation spell and completed it with the second half of a dimensional viewing spell that was written underneath it. She wasn’t prepared to make that kind of mistake again, especially when the stakes were so high.

As she finished rereading the spell, she became aware that the first rays of sunlight were creeping stealthily in through the windows.
“Wow” she thought to herself “That was a busy night.”

Carrying the book with her, she descended from the library and entered into the Throne Room to see a large contingent of guards keeping a very close eye on Sombra, but as far as Twilight could see, he hadn’t moved at all.
Twilight strode up the stairs to the throne and surveyed the scene in front of her; two alicorns and a unicorn all frozen and looking as terrified as each other.

“Gentlemen” she announced “I am ready to attempt the spell that should remove the stasis lock. I don’t know whether I will be able to lift it right across the Crystal Empire at my first attempt, but I do expect to be able to release the Princesses and Sombra, and also the assault team with Rainbow Dash. If Sombra gets out of hand, I also know how to cast the stasis spell and will subdue him at the first signs of trouble, but first I would like to give the Princesses a chance to have a gentle word with him.”

The guards took appropriate places ready restrain Sombra who now looked somewhat ridiculous wearing a cone on his horn that looked more like a jolly party hat.

Twilight composed herself and began the spell, feeling the magical energy being drawn in from everything around her as she reshaped it to her will, building her power and then releasing it in a surge. Immediately Celestia snorted and bucked backwards while Cadence pulled so hard sideways she span herself round so she was facing backwards, both Princesses gasping with suspended exertion as they realised they were no longer in thrall to Sombra’s evil magic and began to settle down.

Sombra too lurched back to life and immediately felt the restraining bonds around him tighten under the strong hooves of guards placed all around him. He let out a roar of frustration and focused his energy into his horn ready to vent forth with all kinds of evil magic, but when he tried to project his spells, they did not work and he railed impotently against his captors as his bonds pulled tighter.

“What have you done with Flurry Heart?” demanded Cadence looking as angry as Queen Chrysalis in a really bad mood, all softness gone from her face. Celestia stared into Sombra’s soul as her conscience only just succeeded in holding back the worst excesses of her lust for revenge.

“Flurry Heart is safe Cadence” said Twilight “She’s being looked after by Fluttershy and the Cutie Mark Crusaders; you have nothing to worry about.”

“I will kill you” uttered Cadence for the first time in her life, directing every word unblinkingly against the Umbra unicorn.
“No Cadence” said Celestia shaking her head gently “We will banish him to Tartarus.”

Cadence’s glare remained unflinching as she wrestled with arguing the toss against her aunt, but narrowly decided not to; “I will see my baby is safe, and if she is not, I will kill you. Be warned.”

Celestia let those last words sink in. Deep in her heart she agreed with Cadence, but the years of wisdom and experience told her that this was not the right thing to do.

Cadence would never know, but if she had pushed, Celestia would have given in due to the abhorrence they shared about what Sombra had been doing when Flurry Heart had appeared to explode in front of them. The veneer of social expectation had been preserved, but only just.

“Do you have the power to banish him now Celestia?” asked Twilight.
“Yes, yes I do” she replied and directed her yellow aura towards him.
Sombra was levitated briefly and then he was gone in a yellow flash, the restraining ropes all severed at the point where they had been intersected by the spell.

A sudden wave of relief ran through the ponies assembled in the Throne Room and a recently unfrozen Rainbow Dash wailed in frustration that she had missed out on all the action.

Twilight took Celestia to one side and explained about the guards lost in the torture chamber. She listened patiently, looking at her former student with sad eyes and placed a white wing gently over her and led her away from the others who were now beginning to celebrate their victory.

“My dear Twilight” she said gently “I have heard of such manifestations running backwards and forwards through time, but they are unpredictable and nopony I have ever heard of has been able to master them.  Yet, It would appear that Sombra has that power, and as such, the knowledge must be here in this castle. If it is any consolation, the fact that it is a time capsule means that by the time a method is found to release them it will appear to them that they walk out only a fraction of a second after they were shut in.”

“Yes Princess” said Twilight “But time will be passing for their families and loved ones and they may never meet again unless I can find the magic to free them.”

Celestia gave Twilight a gentle, sorrowful kiss. She was right.
> 7 Many Years Later
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was a sunny afternoon in late spring. The wind had warmed with the promise of summer and the birds were preparing their nests for the start of new life.

Twilight knelt in the graveyard as she did at this time every year and placed fresh spring flowers in a vase on a grave. She uttered some sad words and allowed tears to run down her muzzle, dripping into the well-tended grass where they mixed with those shed across previous decades.

She had paid her respects at the graves of all the family members related to the guards lost in the torture chamber, still flying through time without any apparent hint of ever being found.

This was the hardest grave of all, and the last one she visited. It belonged to the son of the guard who had thrown her free; the son his wife had been carrying and he had never met.

Twilight had not aged, but these families had, and she berated herself for not having found the spell that would bring it all to an end. She had even gone to Tartarus to negotiate with Sombra, to plead with him, to beg him.

He had just laughed.

She put a forehoof up to cover her face and sobbed another bitter tear that she knew would not be her last.